Has My PDF Been Altered? How to Check PDFs for Changes

Yes; changes can be made to PDFs. If you’re wondering whether a PDF sent for signature or review has been altered, Adobe Acrobat Pro DC’s “Compare Files” tool can let you know for certain with a list of exactly what changes if any were made and when.

Open your original PDF.

Go to VIEW in top menu to select COMPARE FILES from drop-down list.

Under the New File document page, click on down arrow next to Select File option . Acrobat provides access to PDFs on your desktop. Select the PDF you want to check for changes.

With your original PDF and the one you want to check for changes now appearing in their appropriate document boxes, click on the blue COMPARE button below. Acrobat creates report, indicating number of changes made. Scroll down to view both PDFs side-by-side. Hoover over highlighted text to see what has been changed.